Roses in Flames

After obtaining the formula, Xiao Yi immediately took Xiao Lin back to Jingbei.

He mobilized all his connections and resources to gather top domestic researchers and establish a dedicated laboratory.

They had a clear division of labor: some were responsible for dissecting the proportions of rare ingredients in the formula, some repeatedly verified the synthesis ratio of the drugs, and some closely monitored the experimental reactions.

The lights in the laboratory stayed on all night.

Finally, at the last moment of Xiao Lin and Ji Shu's lives, the antidote was developed according to the formula.

Because the toxins are deeply ingrained in the body, a treatment period is needed to completely eliminate them.

Xiao Lin and Ji Shu were placed in a closed laboratory to receive systematic treatment, and no one was allowed to go in to visit them.

Ye Yuntang was worried about Xiao Lin, so she took a long leave of absence from her workplace.

During this time, Song Xuan and Ye Bainian returned to Yecheng.

When Ye Bainian learned the cause of Ye Yuntang's sister's death, he was extremely sad and heartbroken, and also felt particularly guilty and remorseful.

He never imagined that while he was trapped in the criminal organization, his eldest daughter would go undercover.

In the end, he died at the hands of those criminals.

Song Xuan video-chatted with Ye Yuntang almost every day to inquire about Xiao Lin's situation.

The Xiao family silently observed Ye Yuntang and her family's concern for Xiao Lin.

A month passed, and finally, the good news arrived.

The laboratory door opened, and the attending physician told Ye Yuntang and the Xiao family, "The toxins have been basically cleared, the treatment was very successful, and he will soon be transferred to a VIP ward. After another week of rest, he can be discharged from the hospital."

Upon hearing this, Ye Yuntang and the Xiao family all breathed a long sigh of relief.

Upon learning that he had cleared the toxins, she felt not only excitement and joy, but also a deep, bone-deep exhaustion.

She has experienced far too much in the past two months.

From fear and anxiety to despair and helplessness, and then to guarding the laboratory day and night.

A heart was repeatedly lifted, crushed, and tormented.

The dramatic ups and downs had already drained all her strength.

She glanced at the closed laboratory door, then turned to Xiao Huan, who was crying tears of joy, and said, "Huanhuan, I'm going back to Yecheng."

Xiao Huan was stunned. "Second sister-in-law, second brother will be transferred to a ward soon. Aren't you going back before he comes out?"

It's been a month since I last saw my second brother. Doesn't my second sister-in-law want to see him?

Ye Yuntang shook her head. "I won't wait any longer. It's good that he's alright."

……

When Xiao Lin was transferred to the ward, the entire Xiao family came over.

Xiao Lin was still wearing the white lab coat. After the toxins were cleared, he had gained some weight and was no longer the gaunt man he had been.

He lay on the hospital bed, his dark, deep-set eyes fixed on the outside of the ward.

The family members all came, but Ye Yuntang was nowhere to be seen.

His brows furrowed slightly, and a sense of unease and loss welled up inside him.

Why didn't she come?

Seeing this, Xiao Huan walked to the bedside, pouted and said, "Second brother, don't wait anymore, second sister-in-law has already returned to Yecheng."

"Back in Ye City?" Xiao Lin's voice was low and hoarse, his brows furrowing even more deeply. "Why didn't she wait for me to come out?"

He heard from the attending physician that she had been waiting outside the laboratory for the past month.

Xiao Huan glared at Xiao Lin reproachfully, "How dare you ask?! Now that you've recovered your health, your second sister-in-law is naturally going to settle scores with you! Think back to when you came back from being an undercover agent, how did you treat your second sister-in-law? Although you claimed it was for her own good, you did things that hurt her and said things that hurt her."

"She didn't hold it against you before because you were on your deathbed, but now that's settled. My second sister-in-law is decisive and clear-headed; I'm sure she went back to Yecheng early to see how you perform. If you don't behave well, she'll kick you out!"

"If it were me, I wouldn't want to talk to you either. After all, you always made her suffer. She's already done more than enough to protect you until you're safe."

Xiao Lin clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white.

Thinking about how she misunderstood his relationship with Ji Shu, made her break up with him, and even hired a hypnotist to try to make her forget her memories of him, he felt somewhat annoyed and guilty.

Once he's discharged from the hospital, he'll make amends and try his best to win her back.

……

After returning to Yecheng, Ye Yuntang spent time with her parents and threw herself back into work.

A few days ago, a serious criminal case occurred in Yecheng.

The crime scene was a residential building, and the scene was horrific.

A single mother and her child's maternal grandparents were tragically murdered in their home.

After immediately sealing off the scene, conducting investigations, collecting evidence, and reviewing surveillance footage, all clues pointed to the victim's ten-year-old son.

After the incident, the ten-year-old child ran out of the residential building.

After a search and investigation by the police, he was found in a very short time.

But the child wouldn't say anything.

The police then contacted the child's biological father, who was living in another city.

The boy's father said that he and the child's mother had divorced long before the child was born, and the boy was diagnosed with hyperandrogenism while he was still in the womb.

The man tried his best to persuade his wife to abort the child, but his wife's family insisted on refusing.

As a result, his wife went online to complain about his faults, made a scene at his workplace, and spread falsehoods, causing him to lose his job in Yecheng.

In order to get a divorce and completely get rid of his wife and mother-in-law's family, he gave the house and all the marital property to his wife.

Later, he went to work in another city. When he returned home for holidays, he would hear his wife's family mentioned by mutual friends.

His wife and parents doted on him excessively, indulging his every whim. However, they overlooked the innate personality defects caused by supermale syndrome.

The child was violent and had a strange temper from a young age. Whenever his needs were not met, he would fly into a rage and hurt others.

After finding the murder weapon, Ye Yuntang extracted fingerprints from it.

The fingerprints match perfectly with those of a ten-year-old child.

Ye Yuntang also detected a large amount of sleeping pills in the leftover soup bowl retrieved from the scene.

Ultimately, under interrogation by Cheng Lei and Song Che, the little boy confessed to his crime.

"Why did my grandma tell my mom I was a burden? My grandpa also said my mom shouldn't have given birth to me in the first place. I hate them!"

"And my mother, she actually wants to get married, wants to have another healthy child with that uncle I hate. Now they're starting to hate me. I hate them, I want them all dead!"

"My mother has a habit of taking sleeping pills. I secretly put crushed sleeping pills in the soup, and after the three annoying adults finished drinking the soup and fell asleep, I took a dagger and stabbed them in the body."

"Hmph, those who hate me deserve to die!"

After the case was settled, it happened to be the weekend, and Cheng Lei suggested that everyone go out for dinner together.

The street-side food stalls were bustling with activity, full of lively, smoky flavors.

After all the dishes were served, everyone started chatting, from the case to interesting things in their daily lives.

Cheng Lei sat down next to Ye Yuntang. "Sister Yuntang, is Boss really alright? When can we see him again?"

Ye Yuntang hasn't contacted Xiao Lin for almost a week.

She had previously blocked him on WeChat and hadn't added him back.

He did call a few times, but she hung up after only a few words with him.

"have no idea."

She's been too busy lately to think about relationships.

The experiences of the past two months have drained her of her energy and spirit.

She never wants to experience that again in her life.

Xiao Lin's initial indifference and aloofness truly hurt her.

Although he claimed it was for her own good, she didn't like his behavior.

Even if it's for her own good, you should tell her the truth.

She was truly heartbroken during the time she was treated coldly after breaking up with him.

I suffer from insomnia every night and wake up crying from my dreams.

When he was unwell, she could let it go.

But now that he has recovered, she can't help but hold a grudge.

She didn't even glance at him as he left the lab, wanting to teach him a lesson.

I must never shoulder everything alone again, never keep anything from her, never push her away so she can suffer injustice without knowing anything.

"Yuntang, where did you go the other day? Why did you take such a long leave?" Lu Yu sat down next to Ye Yuntang.

A week ago, Ye Yuntang returned to work. When Lu Yu saw her thin face, he was really shocked.

He was worried that she had gotten sick because she had lost so much weight.

Ye Yuntang glanced at Lu Yu, a faint smile playing on her lips. "I was in a bad mood, so I went on vacation."

"You lose weight on vacation? If you have anything bothering you, you can tell me. I'll definitely help if I can."

Ye Yuntang shook her head. "It's okay, everything is fine now."

Lu Yu raised an eyebrow. "Really? Then your mood has improved, hasn't it?"

Ye Yuntang: "Yes, it's gotten better."

Ye Yuntang was in a pretty good mood, having dinner and chatting with her familiar colleagues.

Lu Yu asked her to drink, and she didn't refuse, drinking several glasses of beer.

After the dinner, it was already around 10 p.m.

Lu Yu was worried about Ye Yuntang taking a taxi home after drinking, so he had his family driver come over and insisted on taking Ye Yuntang home first.

When they arrived at the apartment building, Lu Yu got out of the car and walked up to Ye Yuntang.

"Yuntang, I still want to pursue you. Age is not a problem. As long as you agree to be with me, I will go to your house to propose tomorrow." Lu Yu patted his chest, making a solemn vow.

Ye Yuntang found it somewhat amusing, "You haven't given up yet, have you? I really do have someone I like, I'm not lying to you."

Lu Yu: "Really? I haven't seen anyone you like. When are you going to bring the person you like out in public? I'll only believe it when I see them."

"There is a chance."

Rejected once again, Lu Yu was somewhat frustrated.

He became increasingly curious about the man Ye Yuntang liked. He was determined to meet him and see who he really was.

After Lu Yu left, Ye Yuntang turned and walked towards the residential area.

She hadn't gone far when she suddenly froze.

Suddenly, a slender and upright figure emerged from the shadows of the trees.

Ye Yuntang's heart skipped a beat.

The man wore a well-tailored black shirt and matching trousers. The all-black outfit made him appear sharp and cold.

He walked towards her step by step against the dim light of the street lamps.

During this time, he recovered well and was no longer emaciated, gradually regaining his former handsome appearance.

The moment their eyes met, time seemed to stretch out.

He walked up to her, his dark eyes fixed on her. "Yun Tang, I'm back."

Ye Yuntang looked him up and down. "You've recovered quite well."

After saying that, she walked forward.

The man stared at her retreating figure, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, before he strode after her.

The elevator doors opened, and Ye Yuntang stepped out first.

As she stood at the apartment door and entered her password, the man followed her.

Ye Yuntang glanced back at him. "Your apartment is across the street."

As soon as she finished speaking, the man wrapped a long, strong arm around her slender waist from behind.

The force was restrained yet allowed no escape.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck, and his warm kisses spread from her slender neck to her cheeks. Just as he was about to kiss her lips, Ye Yuntang turned her head away, avoiding his kiss.

She reached out and pushed him away.

Xiao Lin frowned slightly, his dark eyes fixed on Ye Yuntang. "You...don't want to see me?"

Ye Yuntang's long eyelashes trembled slightly. Looking at the man's aggrieved and hurt eyes, she said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Xiao Lin, do you know why I went back to Ye City before you came out of the lab?"

After a moment of silence, Xiao Lin nodded. "I understand."

"Then tell me," Ye Yuntang bit her lip, forcing back the stinging sensation in her nose, "what's the reason?"

Xiao Lin met her slightly reddened eyes. "Because I made a mistake."

Ye Yuntang, "Where did I go wrong?"

"My mistake was not contacting you immediately after returning from undercover, not telling you the reason, which made you misunderstand my relationship with Ji Shu and made you sad and upset. My biggest mistake was selfishly wanting to have someone hypnotize you..."

Ye Yuntang nodded. "At least you have some conscience and know where you went wrong."

She was really sad during that time.

She thought he had changed his mind, that he had broken his vow, and that he no longer loved her.

"Xiao Lin, the most fundamental thing for two people to be together is mutual trust and understanding. What we need is to walk side by side, not to do things that hurt each other under the guise of 'for your own good'."

"Look, I went back to Yecheng early and didn't contact you. Aren't you also feeling bad?"

Xiao Lin nodded. "Yes."

Not only that, but when he saw that guy surnamed Lu confess his feelings to her again, his heart felt like it was being gnawed by ants.

Jealousy, discomfort, bitterness, and a strong sense of possessiveness—various emotions intertwined and surged within me.

Thinking about the day she broke up with him, the day she saw him with Ji Shu in the hospital room, he felt like slapping himself a few times.

At that time, she must have felt even more pain, despair, and collapse than he did.

"Yuntang, I'm sorry. No matter what happens in the future, I will tell you the truth and never act on my own again."

Almost the instant he finished speaking, Ye Yuntang threw herself into his arms.

Having been through so much together, she believed he had finally understood how two people in love should get along.

She looked up, a smile appearing in her reddened eyes. "Alright, I forgive you. Now, you can kiss me."